If you knew better you could probably talk about any feature from Windows 8 in detail other than "file copy and task manager!" but no, the improvements people always mention are copy and pasted from reviews because they do not even understand what they're using actually using. I doubt any of you have even used storage spaces or know what they did to the memory heap, you're ratting off bullet points and regurgitated talking points to justify your personal upgrades. When they give me real reasons to upgrade from Windows 7, I will consider it. The os being cheap isn't a reason to upgrade.

Stolk wrote on Dec 5, 2012, 21:43:A lot of people like it, including me. I usually leave it on the desktop and rarely see the new Windows 8 interface, but it is indeed a fast and surprisingly problem free OS, for me. This is just elitist tech geeks trying their best to give it a bad name.

You're using Windows 7 with an annoying tablet interface bolted onto it that you manage to ignore and very minor under the hood changes. Stop trying to deceive yourself that you're somehow blazing a new path that "tech elitist geeks" somehow don't understand. Of course it's problem free, its based almost entirely on Windows 7 which has years of stability testing. This is not an accomplishment! It has nothing to do with "hating", it's an operating system, not a band. Instead of people being elitist tech geeks maybe others just have really low standards.

PropheT wrote on Dec 5, 2012, 21:53:So why use 8 instead of 7? I can't honestly think of a good reason.

Because Windows 8 is superior. Why isn't what reason enough?

Also, the ignorant stubborn people out there who don't spend a reasonable amount of time in the new interface are selling themselves short. I spend the majority of my time in the regular desktop but occasionally switch to the new interface for reading stock info and whatnot. It is quite nice.

No one is arguing that Win8 isnt a technological improvement over Win7, after all Win7 was built on the bloated corpse of Vista...

What we do have a problem with is the potential destruction of the PC as an open platform.

It wont happen overnight, but wait for Windows9 and and the "Windows compatible software".

Im not saying its going to be as bad as Apple where they control both the hardware and software that goes in your machine, but you can forget about any software running on your Win9 machine that isnt certified or purchased through the Windows Store.

I really don't get it. I like the metro and I like the modern yet classic lines of the new look windows 8 has. reminds me of my old Amiga days. Mixing old and new is not a bad thing. Navigation under metro is far better and it does not feel like a phone or console.

The task manager is FAR superior to windows 7 as are all the progress indicators I have seen so far. I also like the pointer and navigation layout in file explorer. wireless seems quicker to connect and more stable.. not to mention easier to use.

And did I fail to mention again that this thing is FAST. Everything is much faster with windows 8 on the same hardware I was using with windows 7. memory management, screen management, application switching, file copying.. there is literally not a single negative or weak point I have seen yet.

Stolk wrote on Dec 5, 2012, 21:43:A lot of people like it, including me. I usually leave it on the desktop and rarely see the new Windows 8 interface, but it is indeed a fast and surprisingly problem free OS, for me. This is just elitist tech geeks trying their best to give it a bad name.

You're using Windows 7 with an annoying tablet interface bolted onto it that you manage to ignore and very minor under the hood changes. Stop trying to deceive yourself that you're somehow blazing a new path that "tech elitist geeks" somehow don't understand. Of course it's problem free, its based almost entirely on Windows 7 which has years of stability testing. This is not an accomplishment! It has nothing to do with "hating", it's an operating system, not a band. Instead of people being elitist tech geeks maybe others just have really low standards.

just as 7 was built on a foundation of vista before, and xp was the evolution of win2k, itself the evolution of NT.. these are weird arguments and deliberately attempt to marginalize what are nothing but positive additions present in windows 8.

storage spaces, tickless kernel, rewritten memory heap, security obviously a priority in just looking at memory management alone - all this for 40 dollars, and somehow the ones with the blinders off are the people who obstinately refuse to consider an upgrade, because...?

Stolk wrote on Dec 5, 2012, 21:43:A lot of people like it, including me. I usually leave it on the desktop and rarely see the new Windows 8 interface, but it is indeed a fast and surprisingly problem free OS, for me. This is just elitist tech geeks trying their best to give it a bad name.

You're using Windows 7 with an annoying tablet interface bolted onto it that you manage to ignore and very minor under the hood changes. Stop trying to deceive yourself that you're somehow blazing a new path that "tech elitist geeks" somehow don't understand. Of course it's problem free, its based almost entirely on Windows 7 which has years of stability testing. This is not an accomplishment! It has nothing to do with "hating", it's an operating system, not a band. Instead of people being elitist tech geeks maybe others just have really low standards.

Hellbinder wrote on Dec 5, 2012, 21:29:I'm using windows 8 right now. I think its awesome. Its really and updated windows 7 with a new user interface and its faster that greased lighting.

I'm surprised people hate it so much. I like it more and more every day. in fact going back to windows 7 and the older style start menu and controls seems dated and old to me now.

I don't have a single bad thing to say about it.

People always hate new things because they are frightened by change. I'm running win8 and it's the fastest and most stable new version of windows to date. And all of my 50 or so Steam games run perfectly fine on it. In fact, they actually run better than they did on my win7 machine. These articles are created by MS haters and nothing else. And all the morons who complain about the UI are clueless. My machine boots up right to the desktop. No metro ui nothing. And it boots to the desktop in about 6 seconds.

Dades wrote on Dec 5, 2012, 22:12:You're using Windows 7 with an annoying tablet interface bolted onto it that you manage to ignore and very minor under the hood changes. Stop trying to deceive yourself that you're somehow blazing a new path that "tech elitist geeks" somehow don't understand.

Windows8 is a far bigger step, even in the desktop mode from Windows7, compared to what Win7 was to Vista. The under-the-hood changes are quite massive in some areas. Printer driver stack is rewritten (and the last time it happened was in Win2k) where you save half-a-gb space on hard-disk and a very real functionality improvement when talking to computer printers over home networks. If you every had issues keeping printers connected over WiFi to the PC, then move to Win8. SSDs are managed by the OS (if you set the storage interface to AHCI) to the level where no third party utilities are needed. Kernel idle time handling is improved to the point, where you get 7-8% better battery life on laptops. Desktop rendering is hugely improved. DirectX has been expanded to run better on low power devices (well that was needed due to WinRT tablets) Security is further improved in how memory regions are managed for different applications.

I built my new PC last weekend and dropped back down to Windows 7. 8 was full of annoyances that I don't have to deal with anymore. This system is fast enough that any performance improvements with 8 are unnoticeable outside of dedicated benchmarks. And the desktop doesn't look like some cheap Windows95 clone. Good riddance. I'll take a look at 8 again later if MS gets serious with it and patches in some user requests.

No, it didn't have to do with the Windows Store, and I see that thrown out there every time an article about this comes up. Seriously, just go read the damn quote. Go do it, I'll wait.

Like I said, it had everything to do with Windows Store. He did try to include some of the hardware OEMs in it as well (because of MS building their own PC for the very first time). It was nothing to do with the OS usability and/or the comment on its new interface.

As for how you have turned Windows8 into Windows7, that's nothing new. People did this with Windows XP, Vista, Win7 and even Win95 for that matter. The metro interface can have a bunch of improvements for desktop use, there's no denying that. But the start screen is already more useful than the previous start menu, and some of the metro screen applications (simple games in particular) run very well on this UI.

And in any case, we are digressing here. The reason I posted was how factually wrong the article was in mentioning the Steam user adoption rate of 0.5%, when it's actually close to 5% just for the x64 version. The Gabe Newell's quote is something folks like to throw in for no rhyme or reason.

Stolk wrote on Dec 5, 2012, 21:43:A lot of people like it, including me. I usually leave it on the desktop and rarely see the new Windows 8 interface, but it is indeed a fast and surprisingly problem free OS, for me. This is just elitist tech geeks trying their best to give it a bad name.

You're using Windows 7 with an annoying tablet interface bolted onto it that you manage to ignore and very minor under the hood changes. Stop trying to deceive yourself that you're somehow blazing a new path that "tech elitist geeks" somehow don't understand. Of course it's problem free, its based almost entirely on Windows 7 which has years of stability testing. This is not an accomplishment! It has nothing to do with "hating", it's an operating system, not a band. Instead of people being elitist tech geeks maybe others just have really low standards.

noman wrote on Dec 5, 2012, 21:31:To top it off, he connected the incorrect premise he had, to the Gabe Newell's several months old 'catastrophe' comment, which had nothing to do with Windows8 adoption rate, performance etc and everything to do with the Widnows Store.

No, it didn't have to do with the Windows Store, and I see that thrown out there every time an article about this comes up. Seriously, just go read the damn quote. Go do it, I'll wait.

Done?

See how it had nothing at all to do with the Windows Store? Alright, you didn't go look it up. This is what he said:

“We want to make it as easy as possible for the 2,500 games on Steam to run on Linux as well. It’s a hedging strategy. I think Windows 8 is a catastrophe for everyone in the PC space. I think we’ll lose some of the top-tier PC/OEMs, who will exit the market. I think margins will be destroyed for a bunch of people. If that’s true, then it will be good to have alternatives to hedge against that eventuality.”

It's a comment about market direction when the heart of the PC market makes an OS that's half-ass designed for tablets instead, and a design that will push people and OEM's away from the traditional PC market that PC game makers count on. There's already sales questions about Windows 8 and its adoption rate, you can find articles easily from the last few weeks. You can already see certain OEM's that have been looking for ways out of the PC market, like HP.

I don't mind Windows 8 from using it for the last month, since I had to learn support for it at work. But you know what? It's usable because I can just skip all the shit that makes it Windows 8 and use it exactly like Windows 7, without ever touching the new "desktop"... I never take it out of desktop mode in normal use. So why use 8 instead of 7? I can't honestly think of a good reason.

Hellbinder wrote on Dec 5, 2012, 21:29:I'm using windows 8 right now. I think its awesome. Its really and updated windows 7 with a new user interface and its faster that greased lighting.

I'm surprised people hate it so much. I like it more and more every day. in fact going back to windows 7 and the older style start menu and controls seems dated and old to me now.

I don't have a single bad thing to say about it.

A lot of people like it, including me. I usually leave it on the desktop and rarely see the new Windows 8 interface, but it is indeed a fast and surprisingly problem free OS, for me. This is just elitist tech geeks trying their best to give it a bad name.

Another idiotic article on Windows8. The author simply looks at Windows8 x86 numbers, ignoring the Windows8 x64 numbers on Steam, which are already around 5%, and close to overtaking Vista x64.

If anything, the steam survey shows quite healthy Win8 adoption.

To top it off, he connected the incorrect premise he had, to the Gabe Newell's several months old 'catastrophe' comment, which had nothing to do with Windows8 adoption rate, performance etc and everything to do with the Widnows Store.

I hope he corrects the article regarding the Windows8 steam user stats.